Take My Hand
by The Fifth Dimension
Summary: Sasha and Becky had been dating for over two years, and Sasha knew she had to make their third anniversary one to treasure. With Bayley and Charlotte aiding her, would this be a time that they would remember forever, or a time that they would all wish to forget?
1. Ten Ninety-Five

**Author's Note: A few quick things before you read! 1) Normally, I'm awful at keeping up with multi-chapter fics. To combat that, I've written everything already! It's not terribly long, a few chapters, but expect one or two uploads a week (aiming for Monday and Thursday) over the next couple of weeks :D 2) This is AU (basically, a story where they are average people, and not wrestlers), but I left things such as location purposely vague to leave a little to the imagination. 3) I love you.**

 **Without further ado, please enjoy!**

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 _ **Take My Hand, Chapter 1 - Ten Ninety-Five**_

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Three years. That was how long Becky and Sasha had been dating, almost to the day. That time was filled with unforgettable memories - memories that would be cherished for the rest of their lives. Their three year anniversary was steadily approaching, and Sasha knew that she had to do something monumental for Becky, even if the latter claimed she didn't want 'anything extravagant' done on her behalf. Of course, Sasha wasn't going to listen; this was a celebration of their love for each other. If anything, this needed to be _more_ than extravagant. She also knew that Becky wanted this too, no matter what she said.

If it were up to her, she would buy Becky the world, but seeing how that was physically - and more importantly financially - impossible, Sasha decided that another gift would work just as well. Still, it was difficult to shop for Becky, not because Sasha wasn't aware of her interests, but because this needed to be special. A joke book wasn't going to cut it this time around. Rather than spend weeks wracking her brain over gift-hunting, she enlisted the help of Bayley: shopper extraordinaire. Sasha was certain that Bayley's assistance on this lovely Friday afternoon would speed the process along tenfold.

"Oh! What about this joke book?"

So she thought, anyway. It turns out that Bayley wasn't exactly the most helpful person in times of crisis. At any rate, it was entertaining to have someone else to talk to while she did her shopping. Even if that other person also had no idea what to buy for Becky.

"She's already got three of those. If I have to hear, 'Bananas are a-peeling' one more time, I'll leave her."

Bayley shrugged, putting the colorful book back on the rack she obtained it from. She circled around the aisles, looking for anything that stood out. The small store wasn't necessarily spacious by any means, but out of all the stores in the mall, this one caught their attention; the inflatable tube-men waving about wildly by the front door spoke to Bayley's soul. If there was anything in the world that Becky would want, it would have to be in here.

Right? Right.

"Sasha, look at this!" Sasha followed the sound of Bayley's voice, pausing her own search to find her friend.

She wished that she hadn't.

"Bayley. What is that?"

The cheery woman was standing next to a large stuffed rabbit, the animal towering over Bayley's tiny frame. The shadow was enough to block out the sun, Sasha mused.

"It's a rabbit! Becky loves these!" She gave the stuffed animal a tight squeeze, wrapping as much of her arms around it as she could.

"No. No way. That wouldn't even fit through our door."

"Oh. Hmm."

"What?"

"Maybe I should buy it."

Sasha sighed, wondering what she evils she had committed in a past life to deserve this. "Bayles, you should probably leave that for the six-foot babies that need it."

Reluctantly, Bayley pulled away from the large rabbit, but not before whispering a long goodbye in its (stuffed) ear. She noticed Sasha making her way towards the exit, motioning for her to hurry up. Jogging over to her friend, Bayley couldn't hide her immediate confusion. "What's wrong? Aren't we buying a gift for Becky?"

"There's nothing here for her! It's just a bunch of silly toys."

After leaving the small shop, the duo made their way through the mall, zigging and zagging between crazed shoppers. Sasha groaned in irritation as a young girl ran by her, bumping her arm, and nearly knocking her over. It was hard for Sasha to hold her tongue, but yelling at a child, surrounded by dozens and dozens of people, wasn't going to make their trek easier. As the crowd grew thicker, Sasha held Bayley's hand, hoping that one of them wouldn't end up lost in the ensuing madness.

A few minutes later, Sasha felt her body jerk backwards, Bayley's own body coming to a halt. With the crowd around them now thinning out, Sasha was able to freely walk over to Bayley, studying her face to see why she had stopped so suddenly. When she followed her gaze, she was surprised by what had caught Bayley's attention.

"A jewelry store?"

After taking a look through the window pane, Sasha could see what the big deal was. Rows of glittering objects adorned the area behind the glass, creating a enchanting, almost hypnotic, light. Rings, necklaces, bracelets - adorned with many an exotic stone - shined ever-so-brightly. It was a wonder how everyone in the mall wasn't following suit and staring at this display.

"Let's go in!"

Bayley's declaration shook Sasha out of her trance, her mind now focused on Bayley. It took a second for the words to fully process in her mind, and by the time they had, she was already being dragged by the arm into the fancy store.

"Ooh, everything looks so nice here."

"Yeah, sure. Why are we here again? We're supposed to be shopping for Becks, remember?"

Bayley put a lone finger to Sasha's lips, signaling for her to stop talking. "Shh. We've been shopping for an hour. We can take a break to enjoy the sights, right?" She felt Sasha's lips move beneath her finger as the self-professed 'Boss' mumbled something incoherent. "What was that?"

"I said that if you don't get your finger off of me, I'm going to bite it off." She took hold of Bayley's wrist, tossing her hand aside and away from her face.

It wasn't very long before Sasha left Bayley to her own devices. For someone with no significant other to speak of, Bayely was far too interested in what this store had to offer, Sasha noticed. It wasn't like she needed a significant other to buy jewelry, but this store in particular seemed to pride themselves on 'couple-wear', as the numerous banners hanging from the ceiling proclaimed. Even from where she was standing - ten feet away from the entrance; she had no reason to browse - she could hear the occasional "Ooh!" and "Ah!" from Bayley.

"Sasha, you have to see this!"

Against her better judgment, Sasha followed the sound of Bayley's voice. This was all too familiar, she thought. "If this is another giant stuffed animal, I swear…"

"No, it's even better!" As Sasha walked up to the counter where Bayley was standing, she pointed to what she was looking at so intently. "Check it out!"

"What am I looking at here?"

"It's a ring!"

Sasha wanted to retort with an "Obviously!", but promptly closed her mouth as she began to stare at the ring just as intently as Bayley was. The design itself was impressive on its own, but the jewel embedded into the center - a large diamond - was what really called out to the two. It was something that would make any woman, maybe even any man, swoon. The sheer size of the jewel, the beautiful design, the sterling silver ring itself: it was a marvel to behold.

"It's gorgeous."

"Right?"

Sasha turned to Bayley, pulling her away from the glass chamber that the ring sat in. "Bayley. Becky shopping. Not ring shopping." She deliberately enunciated each syllable, emphasizing the fact that this was not what they came to the mall for.

"This could be Becky shopping."

Sasha felt her blood run cold.

"Uh, hello? What are you talking about?"

Bayley rolled her eyes, Sasha's dramatic reaction being one that she expected. "You and Becky have been together for three years now, right?"

"So what?"

"So… that's prime marrying time, sister!"

Sasha couldn't believe the words she was hearing right now. All she wanted to do was buy Becky a gift for their anniversary. Now she was in a jewelry store talking about marriage with Bayely. How did this happen? Why did this happen?

"Are you insane?"

"Dude, it's been a long time. Three whole years! And you've been best friends even longer than that! Don't you think it's time to take it to the next level?"

"So that's a 'yes,' then."

"Huh?"

"You ARE insane!"

Bayley would swear to anyone that this wasn't premeditated, but being in this store - surrounded by couple's paraphernalia, the feeling of pure love in the very air that they were breathing - it all just came to her. And how could it not? Sasha and Becky had been dating for three years. They ate together, spent their weekends together; as of six months ago, they were even living together. If Sasha announced that she would start working with Becky this coming Monday, Bayley wouldn't be surprised in the slightest.

"You two are practically married already."

"But we're not married!"

"The only thing that separates you from a married couple is a ring."

Sasha did not like this conversation. She didn't want to feel pressured into marriage; it was supposed to be a slow process, when it felt right. That's how it worked in every romance novel she'd ever read, and every romantic movie she and Becky had ever seen. People didn't just walk into jewelry stores, see expensive diamonds, and ponder the next step in their relationship.

Did they?

"This is so stupid," Sasha stated abruptly. "Becky's never mentioned anything about marriage before."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Why do you sound so shocked?" When Bayley wouldn't reply, Sasha connected the dots. "Has she talked to you about wanting to get married?!"

Bayley raised her hands up defensively, wanting to spare her body from Sasha's wrath. "She and Charlotte sometimes have talks about wedding stuff. You know, marriage fantasies."

"Do you participate in these little little 'talks'?"

"…Maybe."

Sasha looked at Bayley, who looked away, and then looked back to the ring, the shimmering gemstone waiting patiently for someone to purchase it. She sucked her teeth, annoyed that she was giving this actual thought. "Why should I have to propose? Why not her?"

"Yeah, Becky proposing. Great idea." Becky put on her best impression of their Irish friend before continuing. "'Sasha, you _ring_ my bell! Might I _propose_ an idea to you'?"

"Okay, I get it."

"'-We could have a _marry_ life together!' See what I did there? You know, 'merry' and 'marry'?"

"Hilarious, Bayles."

Amidst Bayley's shenanigans, the pair of women failed to notice that a man had taken post behind the counter. "Excuse me, ladies. Are you interested in one of our rings?"

A deer in headlights was the only way to describe the exact expression on Sasha's face. She didn't know what to say. Time was at a standstill as she pondered on how to proceed from here. Was this what she wanted? Sure, three years is a long stretch of time to be with someone, but marriage? Were they even ready for such a commitment?

"Ma'am?" The jeweler decided to make his presence known. "Anything I can help you with?

She turned to Bayley, silently praying that her friend would have some sort of answer. Instead, she received an enthusiastic thumbs up, her feelings on the matter clear as day. Sasha bit her bottom lip, the words on the tip of her tongue.

"How much is this one?"


	2. Lead by Example

Sasha gripped the tiny box between her fingers, the future of her relationship with Becky sitting idly inside. How Bayley had managed to convince her that a proposal was a decent idea, Sasha would never fully comprehend. That woman had some phenomenal powers of persuasion, and they needed to be dealt with. Eventually. Right now, Sasha was too busy being persuaded into stopping by Bayley's house.

"No."

"You don't have a say. I'm the driver."

Sasha wanted to violently slam her head into the head of the car seat, no longer amused with Bayley's shenanigans. "I'm the passenger. Doesn't the passenger have any rights?"

"You have radio control."

"Your radio doesn't even work!"

Bayley responded with a wicked laugh, twirling an invisible mustache as she did so. All she needed was a set of train tracks, a rope, and possibly duct tape to make the experience even more authentic.

If the skies opened up and a flying unicorn told Sasha that Bayley's sole purpose in life was to annoy her, she would believe it. For all of her positive attitude and sunny disposition, Bayley could be very mischievous, if the opportunity presented itself. Unfortunately for Sasha, the opportunities seemed to present themselves twice as much when they were alone together.

Charlotte's influence was spreading.

"So, I bet you're wondering why we're driving to my humble abode."

"Well, considering that you made this decision without consulting me first…"

"We need privacy."

Sasha wasn't sure if her mind was playing tricks on her or not, but she was certain that she saw a glint in Bayley's eye. That, along with the bizarre smirk on her face, made for a chilling scene, from Sasha's perspective. 'Privacy' never had pleasant implications; it generally involved something secretive, and the fact that she was holding the biggest secret she'd ever kept, Sasha was worried, to say the least.

"You're not going to murder me, are you?"

"On a Friday afternoon, with the sun still up? Sasha, I would never! In the cover of night? Well, that might be a different story." She turned to Sasha, who wasn't laughing along with her. What a killjoy, Bayley thought. "It'll be fun!"

The sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach told Sasha otherwise.

After adjusting her vision to the unusually bright, visual vomit that was Bayley's living room, Sasha took a seat on the nearest couch. She distinctly remembered Becky helping this poor woman paint and decorate her house when Bayley had only just moved in. That was about two years ago, and Bayley never once thought about changing it. Sasha offered many times to help redecorate - every time she walked into this eyesore - but Bayley insisted that it stay the same. Something about wanting to keep the memory of her and Becky having fun together while doing it. Which was sweet, of course.

It would've been a lot sweeter if Becky and Bayley weren't both terribly style-impaired.

Sasha was beginning to grow impatient with the young woman sitting to her left. She was promised that something would happen, but all they were doing was watching some weird documentary about fish. Well, perhaps Bayley hadn't promised anything, per se, but it was heavily implied!

"Bayley."

"Yes?"

"Why did we come to your house?"

With that, Bayley hopped out of her seat, a decorative vase nearly destroyed in the process. She was excited, and whenever Bayley was excited, bad things happened for Sasha - the ring in her pocket an expensive reminder of the consequences of said excitement.

"I was waiting for you to ask!"

Bayley walked over to Sasha and, without warning, yanked her by the wrists. How many more times today was this woman going to put her hands on her, Sasha wondered. When she was sure that Sasha was standing at attention, she led her over to the center of the living room, which was open enough for…

"Roleplay!"

Sasha stuck a finger in her ear, figuring that she had gone deaf, or had some form of auditory disease thar she needed to get checked out. Clearly Bayley did not say 'roleplay.' Not even Bayley would suggest a thing that was so silly - so unbelievably ludicrous. There was no chance.

"Sasha?"

"Stop. I'm just… I'm trying to pretend you didn't say what I think you said."

"Quit being dramatic. People do this all the time."

"Where?"

"Online."

Murder didn't sound like such an awful time after listening to Bayley's nonsense.

"We have to work on your proposal techniques."

"That's so stupid."

"Your anniversary isn't too far off! I know you want this to be perfect."

Sasha hated admitting when Bayley was right, but Bayley _was_ right in her assertations. She did want this to be perfect - she wanted anything and everything having to do with Becky to go perfectly, because Becky was perfect. She had to give Bayley some credit; she excelled at reading her friends. Sasha still wasn't one-hundred percent certain about this proposal idea, so maybe Bayley was onto something with this 'roleplay' business.

"Fine," Sasha begrudgingly stated, accepting Bayley's request. "What do I do?"

"I'll be Becky, and you be you. That way, you can practice what you're going to say when you pop the question."

"Alright. I guess."

Sasha cleared her throat, preparing to give some sort of speech. That was how they did it in movies, anyway. She needed a hobby, one that didn't involve romantic comedies. "Hey, Becky. Can we talk?"

"Oi, what's eatin' ya lass?!"

Bayley's impression of Becky was quite literally the worst thing that Sasha Banks ever had the displeasure of hearing. It wasn't bad enough to be insulting, but definitely wasn't good enough to sound Irish. If Sasha had to describe it in words, she would say that it sounded like a dying, tone-deaf Scottish boy.

"So. Stupid."

"What's that, darlin'?!"

"Well, _Becky_. We've been dating for a long time now-"

"Yes, yes! Three years! Ain't that somethin'?!"

Sasha powered through the urge to strangle Bayley in the middle of her own home. The only thing keeping her friend alive was the thought of proposing from the inside of a prison cell. That would be an anniversary to remember for sure.

"You're the most important person in the world to me, and I love you so-"

"You're quite touchy-feely today, aren't ya lass?!"

Unable to take any more of Bayley's ridiculous impersonation, Sasha forcefully dropped to one knee, pulling out the ring case from within her pocket. "That's it. I'm just going to cut to the freakin' chase. Will you marry me?"

Before Bayley could reply, her front door slowly creaked open, the intruder glancing between the two women in bewilderment. "Am I interrupting something here?"

Sasha whipped her head back to Bayley, obvious disapproval written all over her face. "What the hell is Charlotte doing here? And why does she have a key to your house?"

"Well, uh… Charlotte lives the closest to me, and-"

"And sometimes Bayley locks herself out of her own house."

Sasha certainly wasn't expecting Charlotte to randomly show her face here. The fact that the blonde even had the means to walk in and out of Bayley's home was a testament to how deep the four women's trust in each other ran. This was definitely still very embarrassing, however, Sasha couldn't lie. Walking in on one of your closest friends mock-proposing to your other closest friend - Charlotte must've been thrown for a loop.

"Okay. Why are you here though?"

"Why, Sasha! That's no way to treat an invited guest!"

Sasha slowly turned her head to Bayley again, the slow, mechanical movement causing Bayley to cower in fear. Barely an hour ago, it was Sasha fearing Bayley's presumed, latent evilness; now it was the other way around. The headband wearing woman rushed behind Charlotte, using her tall frame as a shield to hide behind.

"You invited her? Why?!"

"I thought you could use the extra help!"

"She's just going to make fun of it anyway!"

Charlotte, who was less than pleased at being referred to as though she were absent from the room, took a large step to the left, leaving Bayley in the line of Sasha's fire. However, she raised her hand in an attempt to let the two younger women know that she had something to say. "This was my idea."

"You're joking."

"Would I lie to you, Sasha?"

"I'm going to go with an emphatic 'yes' here."

To say that Charlotte enjoyed messing with her friends would be the understatement of the century. She was not only adept at playing mindgames, but she seemed to win any and every argument. This alone made her an intimidating force to go up against, but her imposing physical stature undeniably upped her intimidation factor.

"Bayley said you wanted to propose?"

"Tch, well yeah, but I didn't think she'd tell anyone about it." Another angry glare from Sasha forced Bayley to avert her gaze. A smart move, Sasha thought.

"Would you calm down? It's only me."

"Yeah," Bayley chimed in, still finding it difficult to look at the aforementioned woman. "It's not like either of us actually told Becky."

"Was… was I not supposed to do that?"

Sasha felt her heart sink into her pelvis. "Charlotte!"

"I'm kidding, geez. Now come on."

Sasha desperately wanted to scream her lungs out at both of her friends for driving her closer to the brink of insanity, day by day. Miraculously, she found the inner strength to let Charlotte continue with what she had planned. Charlotte took Bayley's previous spot, in the center of the room.

"I'll be you, and you be Becky."

"Shouldn't I be me?"

"Hah, good one. Learn from the master first, young one."

Her attitude was always grating. It was during times such as these where Sasha wondered how she and Charlotte were able to coexist as friends in the first place. She knew the other woman's intentions were noble; through all of her poking and proding, Charlotte always looked out for her friends. Sasha only wished that she could be a lot less annoying as she did so.

"Can I be Charlotte?!" Bayley shouted.

"Why?"

"She provides funny commentary."

"Ladies, ladies. May I?" Charlotte asked, cutting their conversation short.

Sasha waved her hand about, giving Charlotte the 'okay.'

" _Becky_ ," Charlotte began, winking at Sasha, who only groaned in response. Her voice wasn't over dramatic, as Sasha expected - it was low, her tone soft and passionate, proving that she was taking this seriously. "We've been together for so long, and no one has made me even half as happy as you have." She took Sasha's left hand in her own, caressing the skin with her thumb. "I want to spend the rest of my life with you - every day, every night. I love you, Becky. Will you marry me?"

Sasha was stunned into silence. Charlotte's acting was top notch; she was getting emotional just looking at the older woman down on one knee - her eyes staring up at Sasha expectantly. "Charlotte, that was-"

"And that's how it's done!" Charlotte sprung to her feet, alarming the woman before her. "Told you I was good."

"Yeah yeah, you're good. Whatever."

"So, what did you learn?"

Charlotte was met with a blank stare - possibly the most blank she had ever seen a human face before. She lowered her head in defeat, wondering why she bothered in the first place. She wanted to believe that her - sometimes selfish, sometimes self-centered - friend wasn't this thick-skulled; she'd like to believe that Sasha wasn't a lost cause.

"Really, Sasha? Nothing?"

"What, am I supposed to have a notepad on me twenty-four seven? What do you want from me?"

"You need to be heartfelt, is the gist of what I was getting at."

"Ugh, Becky's not even into all of this cliche stuff!" Not as much as Sasha was, but she decided to keep that little factoid to herself. "Can't I just get her a card that says, 'Hey, be my wife'?

Sasha was definitely a lost cause.

"No, stupid. But," Charlotte, having grown tired of standing, circled around the living room, planting herself firmly onto Bayley's couch. "You might have a point. Becky's more out there. She likes surprises and things done big."

"Which is so weird."

Charlotte and Sasha both turned to Bayley, who was fiddling with her fingers after her out-of-place remark. "You said I could be Charlotte."

"Anyway!" Sasha strode over towards Charlotte, who was currently flipping through TV channels. Sasha wished she could slap that remote from the blonde's fingers, but she still needed her help. "You and Becky have talked about this stuff, right?"

"Here and there."

"Well, what kind of proposal is she looking for? I mean, how big are we talking? Like, on-top-of-a-ferris-wheel big?"

"Actually," Charlotte placed the remote to her side, Sasha's idea pulling her away from the screen. "That's not a bad idea. Becky would definitely like that."

"I was only kidding, unless you want to help me fly in a ferris wheel from Disneyworld. I'm sure they take requests."

"Hey!" Bayley returned to the conversation, having let her friends converse on their own without interjecting for long enough. "There's a carnival coming around next weekend." To prove her point, Bayley pulled out a purple leaflet from her jacket pocket. It showcased various attractions on the front, one of which was, of course, a large ferris wheel. "See? Ferris wheel and everything."

"Why didn't you say so earlier?"

"Charlotte would keep that info to herself, because she likes watching her friends be clueless sometimes. And, well… the roleplay and all."

Sasha had a feeling that she could ask Bayley a thousand questions - no distractions, a one-on-one talk - and be no closer to solving the mystery that is her childlike friend.

Charlotte raised her eyebrow at Bayley, internally questioning exactly how her friends pictured her. "I'm right here."

"Focus! So, will you help me out?" Sasha sat next to Charlotte, her pleading eyes boring holes into the side of Charlotte's face.

"Normally I'd make you beg, but the fact that you're even asking me for help is a sign that you have no idea what you're doing. Besides, as much as I enjoy torturing you, I'm always going to be here for you when you need me."

Sasha gave Charlotte a warm smile, the latter returning the gesture. The two shared a genuine moment of caring, before they were interrupted by Bayley jumping onto the couch in the empty space between them. She wrapped either arm around the girls, enveloping them in a group hug. "Sorry, but you guys were being too cute."

"I take it you're done roleplaying as me?"

"Yeah, being you isn't that fun."

Charlotte opened her mouth, feeling insulted yet again, but Sasha stood up, removing herself from the couch - and detaching Bayley's vicegrip on her shoulder, although that was nothing new. "So, Plan Proposal is officially in effect."

"The carnival's a bit earlier than your anniversary. By about a week, it looks like," Charlotte stated after inspecting the leaflet. "We'll have to work fast if we want to get this right. So, I have one question for you before we do this."

"Shoot."

"Is this what you really want? This isn't a game, or something you can take back. You have to make sure you're absolutely prepared for this. Whatever you decide, I'll support you. We both will." Bayley smiled, her way of showing that she agreed.

Sasha took Charlotte's words to heart - she wanted to make sure that she knew what she was getting into. This proposal ordeal was all the work of Bayley, in hindsight. Earlier, she wasn't entirely sure she would find a suitable gift for Becky at all; now here she was, preparing the perfect proposal for her? It was all happening so fast, but if she were to admit to one thing, it was that Becky was her whole world. The Irish woman was everything to Sasha, and she couldn't imagine spending the rest of her life with anyone else. They've been together for three years, and their relationship steadily grew stronger - more passionate, more intimate, more everything. Was Bayley right? Was three years "prime marrying time" for her and Becky?

As she nodded her head in affirmation to Charlotte's question, she realized that she hadn't answered her own: Was she ready for this?

For the sake of their relationship, she hoped she was.


	3. In Motion

**Author's Note: Just quick thank you to everyone who has read thus far. I've received a large chunk of messages throughout the past couple of days, and they're all so lovely! So thank you again, and know that I appreciate you for even giving my writing a chance!**

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 _ **Take My Hand, Chapter 3 - In Motion**_

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It was eleven in the morning when Sasha first opened her eyes, the sun greeting her with its blinding rays. She was unusually exhausted, the busy work week having taken a toll on her body. It all seemed to be worth it now, waking up with her partner's arms encircled around her waist - Becky never once let her go during their slumber. Sasha could feel Becky's breath against her hair, the rhythmic breathing motion, along with the feel of Becky's chest pressed up to her back, creating a blissful feeling that Sasha didn't want to end.

Being able to wake up next to Becky - their bodies sinking into one another - was a luxury that Sasha didn't have the chance to enjoy often enough. With their work schedules, Becky was always the first out of bed, rushing through her morning routine to make it to her workplace on time. On some mornings, they were unable to eat breakfast together, loneliness creeping up on Sasha more often than she'd like to admit. But on the weekends, with their only obligations being to each other, they were both able to bask in the feeling of waking up to the woman that they loved. For Sasha, these moments were everything. The weekends were truly special, and Saturdays were no different.

Except for this Saturday.

It had been eight days: a long, arduous, stressful eight days. Eight days of practicing proposal speech after proposal speech. Hours upon hours of working on even the most trivial of things. Under the 'tutelage' - and Sasha used that term loosely - of Charlotte and Bayley, she felt secure about the status of her soon-to-be marriage proposal to the woman currently latched onto her waist. Today was finally the day to put it all to the test. It was carnival day.

Though it pained Sasha beyond belief to have to disturb her on such a beautiful morning, she carefully unhooked Becky's arms, and quietly turned to face the orange-haired woman. She was a sleeping angel; Sasha could watch her sleep for hours, merely drinking in the beautiful image before her. She leaned forward, gently, placing a solitary kiss onto Becky's nose.

Becky awoke with a smile. "Up bright and early, I see. Thought you hated being awake before noon on the weekend."

"True, but I got to kiss you awake, so I guess it sort of balances out."

"Look at you, buttering me up already. If I didn't know any better, I'd think that you wanted something."

Sasha pushed herself up with her hands, forcing her tired body to sit upright. "Now that you mention it, there is something…"

Following Sasha, Becky propelled herself upright as well. "I shouldn't have asked," Becky joked, Sasha rolling her eyes in response. "Can't a gal wake up to a nice gesture without having to meet her girlfriend's demands?"

"Damn, you make it sound like I'm holding you hostage."

"Not for nothing, but... you were the one who bought the handcuffs."

Sasha's face lit up, an intense shade of red adorning her cheeks that was met with a series of giggles from Becky. "Shut up, idiot! Never again!"

Becky shrugged her shoulders. "I'm sorry, darling. You know I have to bring it up. Always. Because you're weird."

"You're weird!" Sasha fired back. In all of their playful arguing, Sasha almost lost her train of thought. "There's this carnival by the park, and it's only in town for a couple of days. I thought it'd be fun to go!"

"A carnival? Since when do you like carnivals?"

"I want to branch out of my normal hobbies. Sue me."

Becky groaned, which was an unexpected response. "Sasha," she whined. "It's Saturday morning. Wouldn't you much rather spend the rest of the day curled up by your favorite lass? This fiery hair isn't just for show - I really am this warm."

"Too early for puns, Becky." She ran her fingers through Becky's hair, the texture and feel of it against the skin of her palm was a sensation that she could never grow tired of. "We haven't had a chance to go on a date in a while. I want to spend some time with you outside of our bed."

"I don't know. Spending time on the bed sounds nice, don't you think?"

Another blush from Sasha; Becky was getting way too good at that. "I want to parade you around. I can't do that from here."

"How can I say 'no' when you're laying it on so thick? You really know how to tug at my heartstrings." She pulled Sasha into a loving embrace, followed by an even more loving kiss. It was a shame that they wouldn't be able to do this for the rest of their day.

"Think of it as a pre-anniversary."

"Pretty soon you'll be coming up with half-anniversaries."

"Don't tempt me."

Now that the difficult part was out of the way - convincing Becky that going to a fair on their day off wasn't a completely insane idea - all that was left was to call Charlotte. "Becks," Sasha began, "You should probably go shower first."

"Yeah, wouldn't want you hogging all the hot water." Becky stuck out her tongue playfully at Sasha, who responded in kind, before making her way towards the shower. Sasha neglected to mention that Becky had forgotten to take her clothes with her, but she figured it would make for a nice show when she came out.

Rather than spend any more time fantasizing about Becky in a towel, Sasha decided that now was the ideal time to call Charlotte and let her know that Operation - or was it Plan? - Proposal was in action. She quickly dialed Charlotte's number, and after a couple of rings, she was on the other line.

"Hello?" came Charlotte's reply from the opposite end of the phone.

"Okay, Becky's in the shower. Get Bayley - go to the fair."

Sasha could hear the sounds of a scuffle, along with a few stray "No's!" Before long, a different voice came from her phone's speaker. "This is amazing! I can't believe this is happening!"

"Good morning to you too, Bayley."

"Dude, this is awesome. Two of my closest friends are getting married."

"I haven't even propo-"

Sasha was cut off by the sounds of a second scuffle, this time the victor emerging a lot more quickly. "Sorry, Bayley's just a little TOO EAGER!"

"Knock it off! If I knew you guys were going to be this obnoxious together, I wouldn't have asked you to spend the night at Bayley's."

"Well it's less travel time, so we'll be there before you. Just as planned."

Sasha breathed a sigh of relief; everything seemed to be in order. She lost a little over an hour's sleep during the night, conjuring up all of the ways they could screw up: Charlotte giving Bayley some form of caffeinated drink, Bayley keeping Charlotte awake for far too long playing some niche video game - the possibilities were endless. It was a huge weight off of her shoulders to see that her friends were on top of things, already prepared to leave for the carnival at a moment's notice.

Speaking of which.

"Charlotte."

"Yeah?"

"Shouldn't you be going somewhere? Now?!"

Charlotte gasped, realizing that they were losing precious time by having this conversation. "Right. We're leaving. Bayley, let- No. No. You are not driving. Because it's _my_ car! Bayley, put my keys down."

As the call ended, Sasha prayed to the gods above that they would make it there in one peace.

* * *

The ride to the carnival was by far the most stressful trip of Sasha's entire life; the overwhelming anxiety caused her body to tense up the whole way. She replayed every detail, every minute detail, of her so-called training in her head, but with the event taking place only twenty minutes away from their home, it gave her little time to sort everything out. At this point, Sasha was sure Becky's ring was glued to her side - she adamantly refused to release the box, even while it was in her pocket. She desperately needed to speak to Charlotte and Bayley.

Throughout the ride, she hadn't received a single text or phone call from either woman, her insides twisting and turning when she noticed. If Bayley truly was driving, the plan was doomed to fail from the beginning. Even now, as she and Becky entered the front gates of the makeshift amusement park, her phone remained inactive.

She was going to kill them.

Amidst her gruesome thoughts, Sasha's phone finally shook - like a gift from the heavens. While Becky was scouting out the area, looking for something for the pair to do, Sasha scrambled to check her device as hastily as humanly possible. It was a text from Charlotte.

 _Char - 12:47 PM : Go to the bathroom._

Sasha wasn't aware that there were even restrooms available here. Pretty efficient for a one-weekend carnival. She pat Becky on the shoulder. "I need to use the bathroom."

"I asked if you had to go before we left. I told you it'd come back to bite you." Becky stated matter-of-factly. "Alright, I'll come with you."

"No!"

"No?"

Crap. Sasha swore at herself for letting slip that little outburst, but if Becky discovered that Charlotte and Bayley were here too, their whole cover would be blown. She's come too far for this to end up being all for nothing! "Well, i-it's. Um."

"Ah, it's okay. I don't really like people standing around while I'm using the bathroom either. I'll find a way to survive without you… some... how…" Becky clutched her heart with both hands, putting on a performance that could rival an Oscar-nominated actress.

"You're such a dork." Sasha spun on her heel, hoping to reconvene with her friends. However, Becky reached out to Sasha, yanking on her arm. "What is it?"

She felt Becky's lips collide with her own, the intensity of the kiss picking up as Sasha instinctively grasped Becky's face. Her nostrils became filled with the scent of the Irish woman's perfume - it was a smell that Sasha would never forget, and one that caused her to deepen this unanticipated meeting of lips. When she reluctantly came up for air, Sasha looked at Becky. "I'm going to the bathroom, not to war. You won't really have to survive without me."

Becky looked back at Sasha, a little bashful after her girlfriend's previous statement. "You just... you know… look lovely today."

"Thank you. Also, work on your compliments."

"Right. Compliments."

She would never deny the spontaneity of Becky Lynch. As she made her way towards the bathroom, she could only hope her own moment of spontaneity would be appreciated just as well.

* * *

Perhaps asking Becky to help her locate the bathroom wouldn't have been such a horrible idea, Sasha thought. It was roughly ten minutes before she'd found it, hidden behind copious amounts of booths of different sorts. Had she actually needed to use the bathroom, her bladder would have promptly exploded. A trip to the hospital didn't exactly scream 'marry me.'

Sasha entered the bathroom, closing the door behind her - barricading it with a trash bin, for extra security. She tentatively ducked down low, briefly checking for any of Charlotte's normal footwear that would indicate she was here. When she saw no such thing, or any footwear at all, she turned one of the four sink faucets on in an awkward attempt at seeming natural. At the sound of the faucet, one of the stalls opened slowly.

"Sasha?"

Sasha peeked into the stall, seeing not Charlotte, but Bayley, her knees pulled up to her chest as she sat atop the toilet seat. "Bayley? Wasn't Charlotte supposed to be meeting me here?" She kept her voice at a whisper, afraid that those outside could potentially hear their conversation.

"She was, but we thought that she might attract too much attention."

"How?"

"Because she's pretty tall and pretty blonde. And pretty pretty."

Sasha wasn't going to dispute that; Charlotte could've probably attracted the attention of Becky. Why did she have to be so freakishly tall?

"Don't worry, Sasha," Bayley reassured, or tried to, at the very least. "We've got everything planned out. As soon as you get on the Ferris wheel, Charlotte and I will tell them to stop it when you reach the top."

"And you're sure this will work?"

"It's a Bayley Guarantee! That's trademarked, by the way."

Though part of her wanted to rethink putting her trust in Bayley - a 'Bayley Guarantee' making her wish that Bayley had said nothing at all - her friend's blind confidence restored some of Sasha's faith in her. Knowing that she would be flanked by Charlotte, who was much more reliable (no offense to Bayley, lovable as she could be), also helped tremendously.

"This is it. Oh my god, this is it." The gravity of the situation seemed to be hitting Sasha at full-force as she was no longer able to control the tone of her voice. "Bayley, I'm so nervous. God, why am I so _nervous_?"

"Because you love Becky, and you want this to work out. And it will. You just have to breathe." Bayley put her hand on Sasha's back, moving it about in slow, circular motions. "You're Sasha freakin' Banks! You call yourself the Boss, because you are! You've got this!"

"Yeah. Yeah! I'm the Boss! What do I have to worry about? Proposing? Psh, it's in my blood!"

Bayley brought her hands together, trapping Sasha in a hug. She brought her face up to whisper in Sasha's ear. "Technically, proposing is in a lot of people's blood. If their parents got married before they were born, then it's kind of like what you were saying."

"Thank you... Bayley."

Well, Sasha's mood was officially killed. Still, she had high hopes for this. This wasn't something that she could afford to screw up. When Sasha Banks wanted something, she would get it. And she wanted this to work.

This would work. This had to work.


	4. Round and Round

_**Take My Hand, Chapter 4 - Round and Round**_

* * *

Sasha would have never believed that a line for a Ferris wheel could have half an hour waiting times had she not been presently experiencing it. She wasn't fond of them - or heights in general - so she didn't understand what all of the hoopla was about. If it weren't for Charlotte, she'd be popping the question anywhere else, but these giant, metal deathtraps were apparently decently shocking proposal sights.

Becky had wanted to play carnival games, and after looking up at the menacing wheel before her, Sasha regretted not proposing in front of a ring toss game, or next to a dozen fish bowls. She had to persevere - for Becky, for their relationship, for their future as wife and wife. Sasha swallowed the lump in her throat as they neared the front of the line.

Becky, on the other hand, was thrilled to ride one of these. She could count the amount of amusement parks she visited on one hand. While this wasn't anywhere as cool as a rollercoaster would be, it was somewhere in that league; it was definitely on her list of things to try at least once. Out of her peripheral, she could see Sasha visibly shaking. "Aw, you're not nervous, are you dear?"

"Me? Nervous? Hardly." That was a lie, and for a greater reason than her vehement objection to all things vertical. The ring was weighing her down like lead, the magnitude of what it represented in the forefront of Sasha's head.

"Mind if I hold your hand anyway? I mean, of course you're not scared, but me? Well, sometimes I can be a big baby."

There were obvious sarcastic undertones in Becky's voice, but Sasha knew she was only doing it for her benefit. Holding Becky's hand would calm some of her nerves. "If you think it'll help, then go for it," Sasha replied, playing along.

"Okay, we have one row available right now, so you two," the operator for the ride pointed to the happy couple. "You're up."

With no sign of Charlotte or Bayley, Sasha took a deep breath, an action that did not go unnoticed by the woman standing beside her. "Sasha," Becky started, "If you're really that scared of heights, we can do something else." This was never an issue in the past - they'd never been to any amusement parks together - so she wasn't one-hundred percent sure of how to comfort Sasha.

"It's not the heights that I'm worried about." Sasha wanted to smack herself. Why on earth did she say that? She was trying to not be suspicious, but was too flustered to do that.

"Then what are you worried about?"

Think fast, Sasha. Think fast.

"Nothing."

Definitely not suspicious at all.

"Weirdo. Let's go."

The two took their seats in the empty row, locked in place by the metal safety bar. When the door finally closed, Sasha knew that this was the point of no return. They would go around a few times, and when they finally stopped at the top, it would be time to make her move. It was all so surreal - Sasha never imagined that this would happen, not in a million years. Even as she studied Charlotte's proposal techniques, and listened to Bayley's words of encouragement, it didn't feel real. Now, they were here, on the Ferris wheel. It was real.

As they began their ascent, Sasha averted her gaze from the ground; the last thing she needed was to become petrified. As if sensing Sasha's inner turmoil, Becky laid her hand out, which Sasha graciously took into her own.

"Thanks."

"No thanks necessary."

Two rotations later, and Sasha was sure that Becky's fingers were crushed. She hadn't meant to squeeze so hard, but it was all so nerve-wracking. The Ferris wheel was only meant to go around three times, the last one coming up shortly. The time had arrived - they were going to stop soon. This was the beginning of the rest of their lives. Only, something wasn't right; Sasha could clearly see that this wasn't according to plan.

They weren't stopping.

* * *

Sneaky plots were a lot more difficult to coordinate than spy movies made it seem, Bayley realized. When Sasha exited the restroom, it was a struggle just to time her own exit properly in order to avoid suspicion. Sasha had said to wait fifteen seconds, but was that normal seconds? Mississippi seconds? Another form of seconds that Bayley hadn't learned?

Luckily, she was able to leave with no hassle, minus the few wandering eyes and awkward looks she received from passersby that watched her shifty movements. That wasn't important, however. What was important was finding Charlotte. Exactly as Charlotte had mentioned before, she stuck out like a sore thumb - it was an effortless venture to see her in the crowd, and there was quite a crowd.

"Charlotte!" Bayley briskly walked over to her friend - almost like an uncomfortable horse trot - and sat down with her. "You could've told me you were going to be by the food stands!"

"You think it's easy maneuvering around with these legs?"

"Yes, I get it. You're quite tall. But now that we're together, can we go?"

"Hold on there." Bayley was far too impatient for Charlotte's liking. This needed to go as smoothly and efficiently as possible. There was no room for misstep - no margin of error allowed. "We have to take this one step at a time."

"I bet they're already on the wheel."

"Which is good."

"Huh?"

Charlotte hated being the one that always had to explain everything. She wished that her friends would listen to her sometimes. "We want them to be on the ride already. We can slip through the line while staying out of their sight."

"Oh, that's genius."

"It was genius when I told you the first time too," Charlotte added, slightly vexed that Bayley hadn't memorized all of this by now. "We walk, but stealthily."

"If we're going to act like spies, we should have code names." Bayley could hardly contain herself, bouncing in place, her feet barely remaining on the ground.

"I swear to god."

"I'll be 'Sparkplug.' You can be," the young woman paused, bringing her hand to her chin. "'Amazon!'"

"Are you done?"

"'Are you done' who?"

Charlotte let out a low growl. She was not getting paid enough for this. Well, she wasn't getting paid at all, but she was highly considering asking Sasha for payment after this. "… Sparkplug."

"Ready when you are, Amazon!"

Ignoring Bayley's complete destruction of their chances at being a credible team, Charlotte led her friend to the Ferris wheel. There was no searching involved - the wheel, much like Charlotte, overshadowed everything in its vicinity. People were able to spot it from blocks away, as they themselves had done. Charlotte was one-hundred percent positive that Sasha and Becky were already riding the giant attraction. Nevertheless, they kept their heads low as they walked, to be completely safe.

Bayley was the first to notice how huge the line was; it seemed to wrap around itself. She wondered how many of these people had seen a Ferris wheel in action before. She imagined groups of laughing children, being taken up to that great height, their parents filled with a warm happiness. Part of her wanted to stand in line and join everyone else. A sharp elbow to the ribs reminded her why she couldn't.

"Are you listening?"

"No."

She would've preferred the lie, but that was Bayley for you. "The guy's right there. I was going to ask you to keep an eye on the lovebirds from down here, but after that daydream, I'd rather you stay close to me."

Bayley made no motion to argue, and dutifully followed Charlotte. When 'Amazon' confronted the employee operating the ride, 'Sparkplug' stood back, presumably to let her handle it.

"Hey," Charlotte stated as she took a position in front of him. There was no room for formalities when she was pressed for time. "I need a favor. My friend wants to propose, and she needs her seat to stop at the top." She spoke hastily, looking over her shoulder to make sure that she wasn't visible to any of the passengers, two in particular.

"What?" The operator looked up from his - rather basic - controls, baffled. "I can't stop the ride."

Bayley shoved past Charlotte as the words left his mouth. "What? Don't they do that? I know I've heard of these things stopping at the top. Then the two lucky enough to be up there have a romantic kiss!"

"It's broad daylight, so I doubt it'd be that romantic, lady." He seemed to find it amusing. Meanwhile. Charlotte was ready to tear his head off; this was no laughing matter. "At any rate, it's not within my authority to do that."

Charlotte stepped ahead, the expression on her face saying that she was finished playing nice. "Look. We have worked too damn long and too damn hard for this. Do you have any idea how hard it is to teach a girl that is so stuck-up how to properly ask someone to marry her?"

"I don't think she'd appreciate you saying that."

"Oh, she knows it's true!" Charlotte waved Bayley off, focusing her rage back to the man. "I've spent the last week of my life training this incredible idiot. And do you know why? Because she's like a sister to me. And I swear on everything in the universe, you better stop this god damn, STUPID ride - and yeah, it's stupid! It's a stupid. Ride!"

As Charlotte eyed the crowd of people behind her, Bayley brought her shirt over her chin, hoping that the fabric would conceal her. Charlotte flicked Bayley on the forehead before resuming. "I love my friends, and if you mess this up, then I am going to mess _you_ up."

The man, who said nothing throughout that entire speech, wasn't impressed with Charlotte's vague threat. "You can say anything you want, lady, but I already told your little friend here that I ain't stopping this ride. Now either get in line, or I'll have security toss you out. They don't pay me enough for this."

Charlotte knew the feeling.

* * *

Sasha was steaming as she and Becky departed from the ride. What the hell happened? Where were Charlotte and Bayley? They had one task, and somehow they couldn't even do that right! This was a catastrophe, and the worst part was that Becky was blissfully ignorant to the fact that Sasha was fuming on the inside. She had to play it cool in order to keep Becky from becoming skeptical.

Sasha's phone shook wildly in her pocket.

 _Char - 1:34 PM : We need to talk. Bayley and I can see you. Get rid of Becky._

She was curious as to where they were currently positioned, but decided against looking for them. Heeding the instruction of the text, Sasha groaned, loudly enough for Becky to hear. "What's wrong?" Becky asked.

Sasha hated lying to Becky - unless it was a white lie about one of her 'hysterical' jokes - but talking to Charlotte was a must. "I'm hungry."

"… Okay?"

"Go get me something to eat?"

Becky scratched her head. Sasha was acting weird today, but she chalked it up to post-Ferris-wheel nerves. "Sure. Want a churro?"

"I've never had a churro." Not that it mattered. She just had to get Becky to walk away for a minute or two.

Becky looked at Sasha as if she had told her she'd never had a sip of water before. "You've never had a churro? Poor woman! Your childhood must've been the worst!"

"Are they that great?"

"I'll get you one so you can taste the magic for yourself! Hang tight. You owe me multiple kisses for this, by the way."

God, Sasha loved Becky's little quirks. She would happily owe her a thousand kisses. Once she made sure that Becky was gone, she shifted gears, her anger returning tenfold when she witnessed her two friends jogging in her direction. She stomped over, closing the distance. "'Bayley Guarantee' my ass!"

"I'm taking it that you didn't propose?"

Sasha didn't fight the urge - she grabbed Bayley by the the collar, shaking her back-and-forth fiercely. "Of course I didn't, because I was waiting for someone to stop the wheel!" She released Bayley, who was likely seeing stars by the way she struggled to stand on her own two feet.

"We tried," Charlotte stated. "They're not authorized to do that."

Bayley rested her head on Charlotte's shoulder, her dizziness not completely faded away. "We almost got thrown out."

"Please. That little security guard wasn't going to do anything."

"Not after you practically emasculated him."

Sasha was still pissed, moreso because she couldn't believe that she missed her chance. She couldn't blame Charlotte and Becky; they did their best. Their best, unfortunately, wasn't enough to compete with the inner workings of carnival staff. "Great. That's it, I guess."

"Maybe this was for the best."

"Charlotte!" Bayley didn't understand why Charlotte would say that, especially after what she was saying before - about their sisterhood and friendship. "Weren't you the one that said that this _had_ to work?"

"That was when I thought this whole Ferris wheel proposal thing was going to happen. Now that it's not, we can take another look at this. You'll have more time to think about everything, and maybe even propose on the actual day of your anniversary. And even if you don't, there's plenty of time after that. The ring isn't going anywhere. Neither is Becky."

Sasha could tell that Bayley didn't share that opinion, but Charlotte had a point - a very good one at that. Sasha had tried so hard to make this the perfect gift instead of the perfect engagement. She wanted the atmosphere - the environment - to be bigger than the engagement itself, but that wasn't right. She should listen to Charlotte and hold it off until further notice.

Except she didn't want to.

Sasha had her apprehensions about this when Bayley originally brought it up, but after eight days of talking about nothing but her future life with Becky, she couldn't hold it off. She wanted to see Becky smile wider than she'd ever seen her smile before; she wanted to see the tears of joy stream down the sides of Becky's face as she mouthed the word 'Yes' with her lips, because she was too choked up for words; she wanted to wipe those tears away and write the next chapter in their relationship.

But above all else, she wasn't sure that she'd have this same level of confidence, small as it was. That was something that she always prided herself on - her confidence - but like most things involving Becky, this wasn't the same. As Sasha said, Charlotte made a lot of sense - maybe it _would_ be better to wait. After everything that had happened today though, after it took so much convincing from both of her friends to go through with it in the first place, she wasn't sure if it was physically and mentally possible for her to wait.

"I can't."

"What?"

"I can't wait, Charlotte. I love Becky, and if I prolong this, it's going to be a nightmare. I don't think I'd be able to do this again. I have to do it today. I'm going to do this today."

"Yeah you are!" Bayley bounded over to Sasha, wrapping her arms around her neck. "I'm excited!" She raised a lone fist to the air.

"You're always excited," Charlotte stated calmly.

"Charlotte, you don't have to help if you don't want to. You've already done more than I could've asked for."

Charlotte scoffed at Sasha for suggesting that. "Cut it out. Just accept that you can't get by without me."

"Excuse you! I can do just fine on my own!"

"No, you can't." Charlotte continued talking before Sasha could interrupt. "We need another course of action, and I think I have an idea."

"Well don't keep it to yourself."

Charlotte pulled out her phone, typing up a lengthy text. Within seconds, Sasha's phone lit up, signaling that she received a message. "If you want to get this done today - and you're sure of it - then take Becky to that place. I sent you the address and everything. Bayley and I will get there before you and set everything up."

"Okay. I think." Sasha was confused, but went with it. Charlotte knew what she was doing. Usually.

"Hand me the ring."

"For real?"

"Yes, 'for real.' Everything has to be set before you get there."

"Wait, what exactly is going on?"

Bayley snatched Sasha's phone out of her hands, disregarding her protests. When she read the words, she recognized the name instantly. "This is my favorite restaurant!"

Restaurant? Oh no.

"Please tell me she's wrong."

Charlotte shrugged. "I know someone that works there. It's all I've got, honey. Just keep Becky occupied - play some games. Then meet up there around six."

"Charlotte, we have to go." Bayley tugged at Charlotte's sleeve. They had been conversing for too long, and Becky was sure to be back any second. Without another word, the duo left, bidding Sasha a silent farewell. Sasha didn't have to stand around for very long, as Becky strolled up to her, churros in hand.

"Sorry. The line was ridiculous. That's the magic of churros!"

Sasha let out an unenthusiastic chuckle, her mind preoccupied. A restaurant proposal - it definitely wasn't as random or spontaneous as it would be aboard a Ferris wheel. It was cliche, but she didn't care; she wanted to propose. It was a fancy setting - she assumed. She couldn't pronounce the name of the place, which meant that it was probably French. - and although Becky wasn't into 'fancy,' it would be on the heels of a day at the carnival. That alone gave it bonus points. It was no Bayley Guarantee, but she was confident that this time, they wouldn't fail.

She wouldn't fail.

"Do you think they'd ban us if we won all of the prizes?" Becky wondered aloud, after Sasha pushed for them to play another round. "I want that giant, stuffed rabbit. Talk about the perfect anniversary gift, eh?"

As Becky tossed another ring at an empty bottle, Sasha made a mental note to take Bayley Christmas shopping with her.


	5. Dinner and a Show

It was a quarter to six when Sasha eventually pried Becky away from the carnival games. With two sizable stuffed animals tucked under either arm - one for Sasha, and one for Becky herself - Becky left feeling satisfied. While Becky carried their prizes back to their car with little trouble, it took an ample amount of time to fit them into the vehicle at all. When they finally squeeed them through the door - pushing and shoving them into the back seat - twenty minutes had came and went.

And now here they were, Becky driving at a casual twenty-five miles an hour, and Sasha subconsciously biting her nails. Charlotte had told her to be at the restaurant by six, but by the looks of things, they might not even arrive before six thirty. If anyone doubted the validity of Murphy's Law, Sasha was living proof of its truth - whatever can go wrong, will go wrong, and everything went wrong today. Well, not everything; the button eyes of her teddy bear gazed at her through the rear-view mirror.

"I could've drove. It would've been fair," Sasha also wouldn't be driving at twenty-five miles an hour, of that she was certain.

"You must be starving if you're criticizing me for going the speed limit," Becky retorted, concentrating on the road before her. "Normally you complain that I'm driving too fast."

And she did have a nasty habit of driving too fast, except for today, the one time where Sasha all but begged her to do so. Her only saving grace was the optimistic outlook that Bayley and Charlotte might have completed the preparations by now. Neither one of them bothered to let her in on any of the details, but she was sure that Charlotte had accounted for that. Whatever the case, there was zero possibility that this could turn out worse than the Ferris wheel fiasco.

"All I ate was a churro."

"Which was magical."

"Sure. Magical, Becks. But if we don't get there soon, I might take a bite out of you."

Becky laughed heartily, Sasha leaving herself wide open for her quips. "It wouldn't be the first time."

Sasha bit her lip, unable to think of a witty response of her own. She didn't like how Becky easily trumped her again and again just by mentioning their sexual escapades. That stuff was supposed to be left in the bedroom, not nonchalantly brought up in their car!

"They're… love nibbles." Sasha tried to plead her case, lamely.

"My neck says otherwise." Becky rubbed the side of her neck where dark skin marks once were, and where they would appear again, if she was lucky. "What's the name of this place? Something French, right?"

Sasha was grateful for the change of subject. She could only take so much of Becky's teasing. "No idea. I only heard about it from a friend." In retrospect, maybe it wasn't the smartest move to mention that she barely knew about the restaurant they would be dining at; mentioning Bayley or Charlotte at all right now was borderline madness.

"Oh, 'a friend.' Bayley or Charlotte?" Becky didn't face Sasha as she spoke - eyes on the road at all times - but Sasha could tell that she was smirking.

"So you just assume it's one of them? I have work friends!" Work acquaintances, really, but Sasha didn't need to bore Becky with the semantics.

"Right, and I'm the Queen of Dublin. Rebecca Lynch the fourth, of the Dublin Empire."

"Uh, no. The only queen around here is me - don't forget it."

"I thought you were the Boss."

Sasha crossed her arms, not allowing herself to admit defeat to Becky for the umpteenth time in one night. "Queens are bosses." She figured, anyway; her knowledge of royalty left much to be desired.

"Well, it is my humble hope that the queen allows this lass into the royal chambers tonight."

"The queen permits you."

As the conversation came to a lull, Sasha couldn't wipe the smile off of her face. It was for moments like these - where they could have fun, be themselves, feel connected with just words - why Sasha knew that Becky was the one for her. She would never have a chemistry like this with anyone in the world, nor would she want to. They were made for each other, and Sasha felt blessed to have met the woman of her dreams at such an early point in her life.

She wanted to marry Becky, she had made peace with that. However, she had yet to answer the main question that floated about in her mind since last week:

Was she ready?

She had asked herself this before, but she hadn't had a chance to sit down and contemplate it fully. Wanting something and being ready for something were two completely different things, as most could probably attest to. Regardless, they - she, Charlotte, and Bayley - had come too far for her to give up. This was going to happen.

When Becky pulled up into the restaurant parking lot, Sasha checked the time before exiting the car. Six-twenty-seven - not terribly late, but she was sure Charlotte wouldn't be overjoyed. As they stepped through the glass double doors, both women were a bit taken aback by the glamorous air the place exuded.

"Fancy. Your kind of place."

Sasha had no qualms about that; she liked dining at fancier restaurants. "Too bad we look like bums."

"So we're wearing sweatpants, big deal. It's not like they'll kick us out." A flash of terror spread over Becky's features, her eyes widened and eyebrows raised. "You… don't think they'll kick us out, do you?"

Becky's worries were soon quelled as a waiter promptly greeted then by the entrance, taking their jackets in his arm. Sasha barely finished telling the waiter her name before he whisked the duo away, seating them in a cozy booth. If this was Charlotte's doing, then Sasha was impressed.

"Ladies, here are your menus. I will be back shortly to take your orders."

The two women thanked the man as he left. While Becky tried her best to pronounce any of the foreign dishes on the menu, Sasha looked around for any sign of her friends. In the farthest corner of the restaurant - surrounded by a number of potted plants - sat Bayley and Charlotte, garbed in clothing that Sasha could only call 'ugly.'

Bayley had her hair down, which Sasha approved of; her normal ponytail was too bland. Bayley had beautiful hair, and it was about time that she showed it off. The rest of her outfit, however, Sasha did not approve of. A shirt that was too tight, pants that weren't tight enough, and a tacky pair of shades. Did she walk into a tornado of clothing?

Charlotte's getup was even worse. She was donning a large sundress, and as lengthy as it was, it barely reached past her knees. Atop her head was an old-fashioned hat with a sunflower pinned to the brim - the type of hats that elderly women wore regularly. Like Bayley, Charlotte was also wearing sunglasses. Indoors.

If the disguise they were going for was, "Grandmother has dinner with her awkward teenage granddaughter," then they pulled it off fabulously.

"So," The sound of Becky's voice brought Sasha back from her thoughts. "I honestly don't know what is what. I'm going to go by the pictures and pick that way." Becky placed her menu on the table, pointing to a picture of some type of meat. Sasha wasn't sure of what it was herself.

"Just get what looks good. I'm buying tonight."

"Ooh, what's the occasion?"

'Well, I'm trying to propose to you, so I'm hoping this nice gesture won't go unnoticed when you make your decision.'

Of course, she wouldn't actually say that.

"You _did_ win a teddy bear for the queen. You deserve a victory feast."

"In that case, your highness, I will be purchasing five of this eatery's finest lobsters. In your honor, of course." Becky nearly choked on her water when she noticed Sasha trying to discreetly count the money in her wallet.

After a few more minutes of clever banter, their server returned, pen and paper at the ready. "Have you made your decision?"

"Lobster is off the table," Becky stated, unable to resist poking fun at Sasha. "I'll have the roasted salmon. I'm sure that will go _swimmingly_! This is o- _fish-_ ally the greatest dinner ever!"

Ignoring Becky's play on words - how long had she been waiting to break out the fish puns? - Sasha scanned the menu, looking for anything that sounded edible. Rather than waste more time, she agreed to have the same meal as Becky.

"The roasted salmon comes with complimentary celery sticks."

"Complimentary celery?" Sasha gave an incredulous look to the waiter, who nodded at her. She blinked at him, her mind drawing a blank, before she realized what was happening. "Oh, uh… yeah, I definitely want that celery."

A ring on a celery stick. Yeah, Charlotte was good.

"I've never seen you eat a piece of celery in all the time I've known you."

Sasha both loved and hated how Becky knew every detail about her. "I'm trying something new!"

"Fair enough, I suppose. Carnivals, celery - If you dye your hair, I might start getting worried."

"Your loss. I look good in pink." Sasha threw her hair over her shoulder.

"Like a beautiful piece of cotton candy, I bet."

It would undoubtedly be a while before their food was properly prepared, and Sasha wanted to spend that period talking to her loving girlfriend. It was true what she told Becky earlier in the morning: they didn't plan enough dates together. She understood the reason - it was fantastic to sleep in after an exhausting week. She adored being intimate with Becky, but she also enjoyed having fun with her. The type of fun where they could have an adventure, or merely trade barbs while waiting for dinner.

Sadly, this would be robbed from Sasha, her phone vibrating loudly. She was really beginning to loathe this device. Pretending to drop a fork under the table, Sasha knelt underneath it to check her phone.

 _Char - 6:53 PM : Go to the bathroom._

What was with Charlotte and bathroom rendezvous?

"I probably shouldn't have drank that water."

"Sprung a leak?"

"I'm a lady - I don't 'spring leaks,' okay?"

"If there's even a tiny drop on that seat when you get up, I'm making fun of you forever."

Sasha scowled at the orange-haired woman before setting off for the restroom. As she walked, she became intently aware of the fact that both "awkward teenage girl and her grandmother" were missing; Bayley had gone with Charlotte.

This was going to be a pain.

"It smells in here."

"It's a bathroom."

"Which leads me to my next question: Why are we in the bathroom?"

Charlotte pulled a folded piece of paper from her purse, ironing out its creases with her hand. Color coded bullet points lined the page, piquing Sasha's interest. "We need to review. You already ordered the celery, right?" Charlotte asked, eyes fixated on the page.

"The guy pretty much ordered it for me. I'm guessing you did that?"

"You guess correctly. You'll offer Becky a peace of your celery." Charlotte showed Sasha the list, running down each and every item. "You'll obviously give her the one with the ring on it. She'll be surprised, the lights will dim, and then you pop the question."

"And then she says 'yes,' and you'll live happily ever after!" Bayley was overly enthusiastic, but neither Sasha nor Charlotte had the heart to tell Bayley to keep her voice down.

"You really think she'll say yes?" It wasn't a worry that she had until this very moment - minutes before she was set to propose - but she hadn't considered the possibility that Becky had the option of rejecting her.

"Do you seriously think that we'd go to all of this trouble if we thought there was even a tiny chance Becky would say 'no'? She loves you, more than she loves making fruit puns."

"She has a lot of those, doesn't she?"

"A ton. Bayley and I will be cheering you on from the sidelines. Well, more like from the dark, depressing corner, but you get the picture."

As Charlotte finished giving Sasha her words of encouragement, Bayley held out her arms. "One last group hug?"

"Fine, bring it in."

Sasha loved her friends. They were all so different from each other - from their backgrounds, all the way down to the very core of their personalities - but she wouldn't trade them for anyone else in the world. They assisted her without a second thought, giving up their free time for the sake of her happiness.

They were dummies, but they were her dummies.

Bayley broke the hug, giving Sasha a toothy grin. "Break a leg, sister."

"Don't blow it."

"Just for that, Bayley is now the Maid of Honor."

"That's not fair!"

"Go!" Sasha demanded, pointing to the door.

Charlotte let out an audible huff before leaving the bathroom with Bayley. When Sasha was sure a sufficient amount of time had passed, she followed suit. When she spotted her table, she froze in place at the scene unfolding before her.

Becky was already eating.

Sasha sprinted over, not bothering to sit down as she began to speak. "What are you doing?!"

Becky placed her knife down, unsure of why Sasha sounded so distressed. "Uhh… Eating? Isn't that what people generally do at restaurants?"

"You didn't wait for me?!"

"The food was getting cold! I thought you fell in the toilet."

Sasha frantically checked the table, and to her horror, there was no celery. "Where's our celery?!"

"They probably forgot it. I didn't ask."

"No, no, no! What kind of restaurant just forgets to bring your celery?!"

"Sasha," Becky put her hand up. "It's just celery."

Sasha glared daggers at Becky, the latter suddenly fearing for her life. "Just. Celery? Just. CELERY?! It's not 'just celery!' It's MY celery - it's YOUR celery - it's OUR. Celery!"

Without another word - a shocked and awed Becky remaining motionless in their booth - Sasha found what she presumed to be her waiter.

"Where the hell is my celery?"

It wasn't.

"S-Sorry, ma'am. I just started my shift."

"We ordered a plate of very important celery that mysteriously vanished." Sasha was seething, trying her best to keep her cool since this man was innocent. "Please. Just tell me where it is."

The man scrambled to search through his notepad, orders of differents customers scrawled across the pages. "M-Maybe it got bunched together with someone else's celery order."

"What?!"

"Oh my god, John. Are you asking me to marry you?!"

Oh no.

Immediately as she heard the words, Sasha ran around the restaurant, searching for the owner of the voice. She received odd looks from other customers and workers alike, but no one was going to tell her to calm down. She was on the warpath.

Turning another corner, she was finally able to locate the couple that had mistakenly obtained her ring. Before her was a busty woman - hands up to her mouth in disbelief, eyes brimming with tears - and a man who looked extremely puzzled.

"I can't believe this! You always said that you hated the idea of marriage, but now… Oh my god, I just. John, this is amazing."

"Huh? Nikki, that's not-"

"Drop the ring. Right. Now."

The man grew more confused as Sasha took a confrontational stance, her body language telling him that this wouldn't end well. The woman had the opposite reaction, paying Sasha no heed as she continued to ogle the ring that she placed upon her own finger.

"Hey, are you listening to me?"

"Uh, who are you?" The woman - 'Nikki' as her boyfriend called her - acknowledged Sasha, but didn't remove the ring. "What do you want? Can't you see that my boyfriend is in the middle of proposing to me?"

"Newsflash, morons: That's MY ring, for MY proposal."

"Pfft, yeah, okay. You're going to propose. With that temper?"

"You're going to be seeing a lot more than my temper if you don't take my ring off of your chubby finger, bitch."

That was the last straw for Nikki. In a blind rage, she picked up the nearest object and threw it at Sasha, covering her from head to toe in wine. "Oops. You might want to clean that up. Bathroom's over there."

Sasha barely waited for her to finish talking before leaping full force at her, dragging her to the ground. As the two women fought, John struggled to pull Sasha off of his girlfriend. "Let's all just rel-"

"Hey! If you don't let go of my friend right now, I'm going to hurt you." Charlotte and Bayley hurriedly made their way to Sasha, her screams of unbridled fury alerting them that their friend was in trouble. Or causing it. Either way, they were here, and while they kept the man distracted, Sasha broke free of his grasp.

Chaos. It was pure chaos - Sasha slamming Nikki's head into a plate of soup, Bayley and Charlotte grabbing at John wildly. Everything was an utter mess. After untangling a piece of shrimp from her hair, Sasha shot up, holding the ring in her fingers triumphantly. "Got it!"

"Sasha?!"

Slowly Sasha turned around, and there, standing ten feet away from the madness, was Becky.

"Charlotte? Bayley? What are you doing here?!"

"Uhh…"

Suddenly, the door to the kitchen flung open, a noticeably angry man stepping from behind it. He gasped in horror as he looked at the mess. "Okay. I don't know what is going on here, but I want the four of you to remove yourself from my restaurant!" He rushed over to the man and woman, helping them to their feet. "I'm terribly sorry, Ms. Bella. Please forgive use for allowing these savages to disturb you. Enjoy your meal - compliments of me."

"They're the ones who started it!"

"Out! Get. Out!"

The four friends were unceremoniously dumped out of the restaurant and into the cold night. Everyone stood around awkwardly, unsure of what to say or how to explain themselves. It was Becky who broke the tension. "Can one of you tell me what the hell is going on?"

The three members of the guilty party exchanged nervous glances, before Charlotte gave Sasha a pat on the back. "She's all yours. Good luck, kid." Charlotte and Bayley took a step to the side, Sasha and Becky now alone with each other.

"Sasha. What was that?"

Sasha swallowed the lump in her throat that she didn't even know was there. The chilling, nighttime air did little to alleviate her anxiety. "I was… um… Okay, so… I have this ring." She held the ring up to Becky's face. "I was going to ask you to marry me."

"What?!" Sasha, expecting Becky to be completely speechless, jumped back at Becky's outburst. "You were?! How?!" Becky wasn't upset, Sasha noticed; just surprised.

Sasha took a deep, deep breath.

"I wanted to do something special for our anniversary and Bayley and Charlotte convinced me that I should propose to you but everything went wrong because the carnival was a week early and the stupid Ferris wheel - that I _hate_ \- wouldn't stop and then the waiter didn't bring us the celery with the ring on it and now I just… I don't know! I wanted our anniversary to be special!"

"Wait wait, slow down! Bayley and Charlotte convinced you?"

At the mention of her name - and a murderous look cast at her from Becky - Charlotte took hold of Bayley and made her way back to her car.

"Charlotte, wait. I want to know what happens!"

"Oh, we'll be hearing about this again and again, I'm sure. If we live that long."

When Becky was certain that they'd left, she focused her attention back to Sasha, who seemed to be on the verge of breaking down in embarrassment. "Sasha." Becky waved a hand through her own hair, choosing her next words carefully. "I didn't need a proposal from you to make our anniversary special."

"But they said that you talk about wedding fantasies."

"Of course! Every woman does! Every woman except you, apparently, you nutcase." She held Sasha's smaller hand within her own, knowing that the act always helped her considerably. "I appreciate that you did all of this. It was fantastic. Or it would've been, had it worked and all. Maybe next time, try a bit more... simple."

Sasha screamed internally. Charlotte and Bayley were toast.

"But the fact that you tried means the world to me. You can't rush these things - I only want you to do something like that when you're ready. I'll wait for you, okay?" When Sasha nodded her head, Becky enveloped her in a tight hug. "That's my girl. Now let's go home, I'm going to turn into a popsicle out here."

Sasha was relieved - she thought that Becky might be furious with her for ruining their night out. Sasha was so relieved, however, that she didn't have the courage to tell Becky what she really wanted to say; she finally had an answer for the question that had bothered her for over a week now.

She _was_ ready. And it was too late.


	6. Hand in Hand

**Author's Note: I just wanted to thank everyone who has read, is reading, or will read this story. It's honestly been so much fun to write this, and I honestly might write a sequel story in the future. This chapter is considerably shorter than the others, so I felt like, as the final part, I should upload it together with the fifth chapter. From the beginning, I knew it would end this way, and I hope everyone enjoys the ending. Take care!**

* * *

 _ **Take My Hand, Chapter 6 - Hand in Hand**_

* * *

The blaring sound of an alarm woke Sasha from her slumber. This was the second Saturday in a row where she was up before noon, and she was none too happy about it. She didn't remember setting an alarm at all, now that she thought about it, but considering that she hadn't gotten a decent night's rest in seven days, it was to be expected. The events of the weekend prior were still fresh in Sasha's mind; she'd spent many nights tearfully confiding in Charlotte and Bayley on how much she regret staying silent. She kept the ring on her person at all times, as a reminder of what should've been. Her inability to tell Becky how she was feeling, and what she really wanted - that she was ready - was something that would haunt her for the rest of her life, or at least until she regained the confidence to try proposing again.

So, probably for the rest of her life.

She flipped her phone over and checked the clock - 9 AM, who would wake up at this time? - before realizing that this wasn't her phone at all. It was Becky's. Why would Becky purposefully set an alarm and then haphazardly leave her phone unattended? And speaking of Becky, where was she? It was nine in the morning, and waking up without her was a poor start to any day.

And not only that, but it was their anniversary! Not that Sasha anticipated much of anything, especially since she had nothing to give Becky herself. In all of her engagement craziness, Sasha was never able to buy an actual gift of any kind for her. That is, unless one counted the ring. It might make a decent coaster at this point - it wouldn't be good for much else. Not willing to submit to the sun just yet, Sasha rolled over on her side, pulling her bed sheet over her head to block out as much of the yellow devil as she could.

She remained this way for a solid six seconds before Becky burst through the door, hair a disheveled mess. "Sasha!"

Sasha lazily threw the bed sheet off, squinting in Becky's direction, before reaching for her glasses. Becky was panting, leading Sasha to believe that she had sprinted up the stairs for… something or other. "Why are you yelling so early?"

"Didn't you hear the alarm? You're supposed to be up!"

So Becky _had_ done that on purpose. "Damn, Becks. You sound like there's a fire downstairs."

"Because there is a fire! Of sorts."

Not liking the tone of Becky's voice one bit, Sasha leapt out of bed - swiftly changing out of her pajamas - and rushed past Becky. What did Becky burn this time, she thought, her brain swimming with nightmarish images of their kitchen burned to the ground. When she entered the kitchen, however, she was awestruck.

The kitchen, and the living room adjacent to it, were filled with candles, illuminating the dimly lit room, creating a romantic atmosphere like Sasha had only dreamed of. Candles of all shapes and sizes adorned every table and every counter, all a lavender scent. Sasha was speechless.

"Happy anniversary, darling!" Becky hugged Sasha from behind, planting tiny pecks along the skin of her neck.

"Becky. How? How did you do this?"

"I found the one store that was open at two in the morning. I might've cleaned them out of their candles."

Sasha didn't know what she'd done to deserve Becky Lynch; she was truly the most amazing person that Sasha had ever met. "I love you. You know that, right? I seriously love you."

"Of course, of course. I love you too. Which is why I prepared breakfast as well! Aren't I sweet?"

"Becky. This is too much. I… I don't even have a gift for you." The crushing guilt weighed heavily on Sasha's conscience.

"That's okay. You're the only gift I need." Before Sasha could express her overwhelming love for Becky again, the Irish woman clapped her hands together. "With all of that out of the way, let's eat. I've got 'Becky's Famous Eggs' and 'Becky's famous Ham.' I made it with both hands - guess you could say I'm _ham_ -bidextrous! Or ambi- _Becks-_ trous. I haven't decided which I like better."

Sasha barely had time to roll her eyes before Becky unexpectedly fell to the ground, tripping over her own two feet. Sasha wasted no time in trying to help her up, attempting to grab her by the arm, but Becky shook her off. "Ah, darn it. I think I have a cut on my hand. Could you reach into my pocket? I should have a box of bandages in there." Becky was hardly able to keep herself up, kneeling to maintain her balance.

"What? Why do you have bandages in your pocket?"

"Do you want me to get blood all over the floor? Hurry!"

Sasha shook her head, but reached into her girlfriend's pocket anyway. She felt around for a bit, stopping when she found what she was looking for. She pulled the box out, only to nearly drop it in surprise.

It was a jewelry box.

It felt like an eternity passed until Sasha looked at Becky, who was grinning ear-to-ear. "Sasha," she started, still on one knee. "Might I _propose_ a question to you?"

Sasha giggled, tears already rolling freely down her cheeks.

"I remember the first day we met. Heh, Charlotte invited us both to some weird art show at this museum. She left us alone and said, 'You two will get along great.' Boy, she nailed it, huh? We spent the whole day taking horrible, horrible pictures with naked statues. The look on her face when she thumbed through your phone - it was priceless. If we weren't in a museum, she would've blown a gasket! I remember it so clearly, because that was the first time in a long time that I felt happy."

Sasha remembered it too. She didn't know what to expect; from Charlotte's description of her, Becky sounded like a lunatic. They had a lot more in common than she realized, and all it took was a few (dozen) suggestive poses with human-like sculptures to jump start their friendship. Sasha said nothing, letting Becky continue her speech.

"Years passed, and I swear we spent every day together. Charlotte and Bayley kept telling me to make a move or something. But I didn't have moves! What was I going to do? I was just a girl from Ireland, and you, you were Sasha Banks. You were the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen - you still are. And what happened? A power outage at Charlotte's - we're in an enclosed space, I'm in the middle of confessing, and you cut me off with a kiss. Bayley's clapping and cheering, and Charlotte's going, 'About time. Get a room.' Now we're here, me on one knee. Gotta love the irony."

Both women were crying profusely, Becky unable to conceal the hoarseness in her voice. "Sometimes I come home screaming and crying and cursing, because I can't stand my job. You hold me close, you stroke my hair, you tell me everything is going to be okay. We lie in bed together, telling each other our hopes, our dreams. We talk about what we're eating tomorrow, and what we're eating next week. We yell at each other, we argue, but then we make up - then we make _love_. God, it feels so good because we're so damn close, and I can feel every single inch of your body. I never want to feel that close with anyone but you, for the rest of my life. So, Sasha Banks. Will you make this lass the happiest woman in the world? Will you marry me?"

Sasha didn't have the strength to form words, the only noise able to escape her vocal cords were sobs. She was crying tears of joy - tears of tremendous joy - and couldn't stop. She mouthed the word that she had been longing to hear from Becky last week; the word that would make Becky's life.

Yes.

It took no time at all for Becky to crash her lips onto Sasha's, their tongues entangled - their bodies intertwined. They melded into each other as they celebrated their love in the best way that they knew how. They told one another everything that they needed to know through their lips.

Sasha broke the kiss, staring lovingly at her now-fiancee, as Becky placed the ring onto her finger. "You dork. I thought you said you'd wait until I was ready."

"Yeah, and I waited a whole week! Talk about slow," Becky added slyly. Still, she felt compelled to ask Sasha a follow-up question. "I've been ready forever, and once I heard you jabbering away on the phone, I had a hunch you were too. But, just to make absolutely, completely sure - you _are_ ready, right? I'm not trying to rush you."

Sasha wiped a stray tear from Becky's cheek before replying. "Becky. I've been ready since the second I pushed a woman's face into a bowl of soup."

"Oi, now she tells me."

They stood together in silence, taking in this beautiful moment. What had started out as an anniversary that Sasha wanted to put in the past became an anniversary that Sasha would remember until the day she died.

"Becks."

"Yeah?"

Sasha pulled her own ring from within her pants pocket, slipping it onto Becky's finger. "You _ring_ my bell."

"Have I mentioned that I love you?"

"About as much as I've mentioned that I love you."

"So approximately one billion times. Want to go for two?"

It had been a journey - one that they would all agree was a tough one. It definitely didn't go the way that any single one of them had imagined, but Sasha thought it was perfect. It was random, it was spontaneous.

It was Becky. It was Sasha.

And now it was Becky _and_ Sasha - forever.

* * *

 **The End.**


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